During the last six months, our perceptions of the Bolshoi have been dominated by the brutal acid attack on Filin and by the toxic political culture within the theatre. Yet for most of us, the scandals in Moscow haven't quelled our fascination with the dancers on stage. So among its highs and lows, what have been your most memorable Bolshoi moments?

“Last week I underwent my 22nd operation,” he says. “Some of the optimism that we had earlier has not been justified. My right eye sees nothing at all and my left is working at about 10 per cent. I can make out light and dark; I can’t make out faces. But I want to concentrate on the fact that my doctors are amazing and there is a plan for treatment. There is hope that my left eye especially can improve.”

A story on athletes who incorporate ballet into their training regimen.

In a 2011 Brazilian documentary, World Heavyweight Champion Evander Holyfield is seen doing pliés at the barre as part of his overall fitness regime. “When I was fighting the big guys I needed to have something that they didn’t have,” he explains. “These guys were bigger so I had to have a game plan. And flexibility was the key.”

So we're going to see who gets cast as the leads in "Cinderella." Will we be shocked to see who gets chosen?

Yes, definitely. All five of those women [up for Cinderella] could have played the part. That's how good everyone at Ballet West is. We are very diverse and beautiful, so it could have been any one of those girls. And then with Rex and Ronnie injured, Rex decided to push through the pain even though he had a major torn arch. It's so inspiring to see that kind of perseverance, in the women and the men. Plus, it didn't matter what level you were at the beginning. [Choreographer] Wendy didn't care about that. You walked in with a blank slate. So I think you'll be really shocked at some of the casting choices for the women and the men.

A review of the Royal New Zealand Ballet in "Swan Lake" by Jennifer Shennan for Theatreview. Thanks to sandik for sending in the link!

Just this week in Ohio, a criminal was sentenced to “life imprisonment plus 1000 years”, in a plea bargain that saved him from the death penalty. He had incarcerated three women in his house for years, raped and assaulted them, fathered a child by one of them. When he asked if he could see “his” child before descending to prison, the judge replied a resounding, disgusted “Never”, but did not address him by what could well have been his real name, Baron von Rothbart.

It is the dancers' challenge to portray their roles in specific ways within a production yet also offer resonance of wider readings. We are not here to count fouettes or applaud the height of jetes, so much as to gauge a dancer's interpretation, through those technical feats, of the emotional experiences of character. Fiction? Maybe. Really true life? Maybe.

A look at the dance offerings available to New Yorkers this summer by James Tarmy for Bloomberg.com.

But there are shimmering oases. The Joyce Theater, on 18th street in Chelsea, has performances through most of August. Pilobolus, for instance, a critically celebrated modern dance company, performs at the Joyce through August 4th. There are also companies performing in the Joyce's Ballet V6.0 dance festival, from the 6th through the 19th.

The Bolshoi Ballet returns to the Royal Opera House with the Orchestra of the Bolshoi Theatre for a three-week season of new ballet productions, marking the 50th anniversary of its first visit to Covent Garden under the banner of Victor Hochhauser.